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4Site's Fundraising Page Optimization Playbook 
This playbook is our love letter to non-profits. It distills years of building and testing donation pages, untangling CRMs, and learning what actually moves revenue. Use it to make the giving experience easier, faster, and more compelling for your supporters.
~ Bryan Casler, Vice President of Digital and AI Strategy
Use each section’s Audit checklist to grade your donation page and spot revenue leaks.
Page focus and attention
Form placement and CTA
Reduce friction
Copy and value proposition
Gift arrays and frequency
Personalization and motivators
Trust and security
A high-performing donation page behaves like a true conversion landing page with one job. Strip away anything that competes with giving, then build a clear visual path from headline to form to submit. When the donate action has a distinctive style and every secondary element is visually subordinate, donors make decisions faster and with fewer detours.
Design hierarchy is a system. Use consistent spacing, concise subheads, and a single primary button style reserved for Donate. Place supportive content where it frames the decision rather than interrupts it. The result is a page that feels calm, intentional, and obvious about what happens next.
Consider:
Audit:
☐ Top navigation removed or minimized on donate pages
☐ Donate button uses a unique color and style, secondary buttons are visually subordinate
☐ No competing CTAs in the hero or near the form
☐ Clear visual path from headline to form to submit on desktop and mobile
Motivated donors should never search for the form. Keep it visible on desktop and within the first mobile viewport whenever possible. A compact two-column layout with persuasive copy on the left and the form anchored on the right often wins on desktop, while mobile benefits from a form-first structure with context immediately below.
CTA language should say exactly what will happen. Use direct, action-oriented labels and show progress if there are steps. In urgency windows, a form placed in the hero can lift immediacy, provided it remains readable and easy to complete.
Consider:
Audit:
☐ Form visible on load for desktop, near the top on mobile
☐ Anchor link to the form on long pages
☐ Multi-step flows show clear progress labels and next-step copy
☐ Submit button text is specific and confirms the action
Friction compounds. Every extra field, redirect, or second of delay raises abandonment risk. Ask only for what you need, keep donors in your brand environment, and remove micro-frictions with autofill, card type auto-detect, country prefill, and a clean, responsive submit state.
Embedded or lightboxed forms preserve momentum and typically outperform redirects because the experience feels continuous. If a redirect is unavoidable, make it invisible to the donor and preserve tracking end to end. Speed is a conversion feature, so optimize like revenue depends on it.
Consider:
Audit:
☐ Only essential fields required, optional fields clearly marked
☐ Autocomplete and correct input types enabled
☐ Inline validation present with human-readable errors and focus management
☐ Embedded or lightbox experience used where possible, redirects preserve tracking
Lead with the outcome of giving, not the mechanics of the form. A specific, mission-first headline near the form anchors intent. Two or three tight impact statements translate amounts into change, reducing hesitation.
Longer persuasive copy can help when it answers why give now and why give to us. Keep paragraphs short, add meaningful subheads, and reinforce recurring impact at the exact moment a donor selects monthly. Authenticity beats flourish, so prefer a brief testimonial over generic inspiration.
Consider:
Audit:
☐ Outcome-focused headline present and prominent
☐ Impact bullets positioned close to the form
☐ Monthly value reinforced at selection and near submit
☐ Copy clearly answers why now and why us
Defaults guide behavior. Calibrate one-time and monthly arrays to your audience, then revisit them on a regular cadence. Approachable monthly entry points protect conversion on mobile, while a subtle Most popular cue nudges selection without feeling pushy.
Judge monthly-first vs one-time-first by revenue per visitor and sustainer growth, not by top-line conversion alone. When you have strong context, controlled personalization of arrays can further reduce decision effort and raise the likelihood of completion.
Consider:
Audit:
☐ One-time and monthly arrays calibrated and labeled
☐ Most popular highlight used and validated
☐ Frequency default tested and documented with decision criteria
☐ Personalization rules documented and validated end-to-end
Respectful personalization increases comfort without adding steps. Local currency references and language cues tell international supporters they are in the right place. Symbolic or interactive giving formats can deepen engagement for known audiences by making impact feel tangible.
Social proof and urgency need to be honest and timely. Show real momentum when you have it. Use gentle exit-intent reminders and same-day abandonment follow ups to recapture in-progress gifts. Keep the tone helpful, not heavy-handed.
Consider:
Audit:
☐ Localization or currency reference shown where relevant
☐ Social proof or progress meter used judiciously and accurately
☐ Exit-intent reminder configured and tested for tone and timing
☐ Abandonment follow-up workflow in place with secure resume link
Trust peaks and wavers at the payment step. Place reassurance precisely where doubt occurs. A familiar lock icon, a short statement about secure processing, and a small number of recognized badges are enough when the page is otherwise clean.
Avoid a wall of logos or fine print that competes with the submit action. Clear, simple reassurance communicates confidence and reduces last-second hesitation.
Consider:
Audit:
☐ Security copy and icon near payment fields
☐ Trust badges correct, current, and minimal
☐ PCI scope and hosted fields confirmed with the processor
Most supporters will experience your page on a phone. Design for thumbs, attention, and speed. Inputs must be large and obvious, spacing generous, and the focus order predictable. Numeric keypads for currency and ZIP fields reduce friction immediately.
Prevent layout shift by reserving space for images and async elements. Consider a sticky CTA or quick-jump link only when it clearly shortens the path to submit. The best mobile pages feel effortless and fast from first tap to receipt.
Consider:
Audit:
☐ Touch targets meet comfortable sizing on small devices
☐ Numeric keypads enabled where appropriate
☐ Focus states visible and predictable
☐ No cumulative layout shift during load or validation
Accessible pages convert better for everyone. Meet WCAG AA for contrast and states, provide explicit labels, and announce errors while returning focus to the first invalid field. Every element of the donation flow should be usable by keyboard alone.
Treat accessibility as core UX, not compliance. Clear labels, sensible headings, and predictable behavior lower cognitive load for all users and reduce costly form errors.
Consider:
Audit:
☐ WCAG AA contrast verified for text, buttons, and inputs
☐ Labels and ARIA applied correctly, no duplicate labels
☐ Errors announced and focus managed to first invalid field
☐ Full keyboard operation verified, including modals and lightboxes
Speed is a donor experience issue and a revenue issue. Optimize images and fonts, inline critical CSS, and defer non-essential scripts. Keep third-party tags on a short leash and monitor their impact continuously.
Protect the submit path. Show a clear loading state, prevent double charges, and handle retries idempotently. Plan for peak traffic with uptime monitoring, alerts, and a documented rollback that your team can execute quickly.
Consider:
Audit:
☐ Lighthouse or PageSpeed Insights within healthy ranges on mobile and desktop
☐ Third-party tags audited, deferred, or removed where possible
☐ Submit path responsive, idempotent, and well messaged on error
☐ Incident, rollback, and maintenance plans documented and accessible
Offer the payment methods your donors prefer and tune fraud controls to protect approval rates. Wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay reduce typing on mobile and can materially increase completion.
Verify regional requirements like SCA where applicable. Review AVS and CVV rules with your risk and finance stakeholders to balance fraud prevention with donor success. Enable saved payment options when your platform and policy allow, so repeat gifts take seconds.
Consider:
Audit:
☐ Wallets configured, discoverable, and tested on target devices
☐ Regional SCA requirements met and verified
☐ AVS and CVV settings reviewed with finance and risk
☐ One-click repeat giving enabled where possible
Seamless beats clever. Keep donors in your brand environment and make the flow feel continuous from start to receipt. If you must cross domains, preserve UTMs, session data, and click IDs without exposing the seams.
Consistency builds confidence. Match branding, tone, and SSL across every step, and ensure back and cancel behaviors are safe, predictable, and never abandon a gift without clarity.
Consider:
Audit:
☐ Embedded or lightbox implemented where feasible
☐ Cross-domain tracking verified end-to-end
☐ Visual and tonal consistency across all steps
☐ Back and cancel behavior tested for safety
Plan the unhappy path as carefully as the happy one. Write specific, calm error messages that tell donors what went wrong and how to fix it. Offer alternate payment routes on failure and a safe retry that cannot double charge.
Test with slower networks, older devices, script blockers, and privacy modes. Resilience here saves gifts and lowers support volume when it matters most.
Consider:
Audit:
☐ Field-level errors are specific and helpful
☐ Payment failures offer clear alternatives or retry paths
☐ QA covers older devices, low bandwidth, and privacy modes
Reliable instrumentation is how you turn changes into learning. Track page views, step views, submits, abandons, frequency selection, and chosen amounts with consistent naming. Preserve UTMs to the receipt and carry campaign data into your CRM for attribution.
When traffic is limited, test messaging in higher-volume channels like email and paid social, then bring winners back to the page. A stable data layer and clear documentation keep teams aligned and experiments comparable over time.
Consider:
Audit:
☐ GA4 events named consistently and documented
☐ Meta Pixel and CAPI implemented where policy allows
☐ Data layer schema stable, versioned, and shared with stakeholders
Make testing a habit. Start with big levers that move behavior, change one major element at a time, and decide in advance how you will judge success. Keep a living backlog prioritized by expected impact and effort, with clear owners and dates.
Document every test and every material edit in a changelog. Wins roll forward. Losses teach you what to try next. Over time, small lifts compound into meaningful revenue.
Quarterly test ideas:
Consider:
Audit:
☐ A/B framework or repeatable process in place
☐ Primary and secondary KPIs defined for each test
☐ Test backlog prioritized and owned
☐ Changelog maintained with dates, hypotheses, and decisions
The giving moment is the start of a relationship, not the end of a transaction. Thank donors quickly, restate impact in plain language, and offer a clear next best action that fits the context of their gift.
Receipts must arrive instantly and reliably. Protect deliverability, and route donors into the right onboarding or welcome series so early momentum becomes long-term engagement.
Consider:
Audit:
☐ Thank-you page reinforces impact and suggests a next step
☐ Receipt arrives instantly with clear sender and subject
☐ Deliverability checks pass for sending domains
☐ Post-gift journeys mapped and triggered correctly
Do not crowd the main decision surface with alternatives. Keep the primary path clean, then offer stock, DAF, workplace, crypto, and planned giving options in secondary locations and follow ups where they inform rather than compete.
Provide clear instructions and contacts for non-cash gifts so interested supporters can act without friction.
Consider:
Audit:
☐ Alternative options are easy to find off the main page
☐ Instructions clear, current, and accessible
Public pages should stay simple. Limit designations and provide an Other option for special cases. When operations require more complexity, create an internal variant behind a private link rather than exposing every option to every donor.
Validate that designations map correctly from form to CRM to finance. Clean experiences on the surface rely on accurate plumbing underneath.
Consider:
Audit:
☐ Public page has few designations plus Other
☐ Internal variant available for staff use cases
☐ End-to-end data mapping validated and documented
Meet regional expectations without burdening everyone with extra fields. Display the right disclaimers and tax language by country, and expose VAT or tax inputs only when they apply.
Localize receipts and sender details where appropriate so international supporters receive documentation that meets their needs without extra steps.
Consider:
Audit:
☐ Regional notices present where needed
☐ Conditional tax fields functioning correctly
☐ Localized receipts configured and tested
Great pages stay great when someone owns them. Assign stewardship for copy, UX, analytics, platform settings, and risk. Maintain backups and a rollback plan, and put quarterly reviews for arrays, copy, performance, and tracking on the calendar.
Audit third-party scripts for security, necessity, and performance. A disciplined maintenance rhythm preserves gains and prevents regressions when teams change or campaigns scale.
Consider:
Audit:
☐ Owners named and reachable
☐ Backup and rollback documented and tested
☐ Quarterly review cadence on the calendar
☐ Third-party script review complete with actions logged
We hope that means you’re interested in turning this playbook into results. Our Support Retainer is the easiest way to do that. You get flexible access to a senior, cross-functional team across strategy, design, engineering, data, and CRM, all focused on shipping work that grows revenue and strengthens your digital stack!